March Rush

 March was a doozy of a month!

Was it because Easter was extra early this year? 

Whatever it was, 

I felt like I could barely keep my head above water!

Every day had something big in it.

I literally had to take one day at a time and couldn't think about

 the next until I was in bed and that current day had completed. 

It was Western Day at the girls school.
Flannel shirts is about as western as it gets at our house.

With some pigtail braids it was good enough!

I was scheduled to make copies that day for Lindi's teacher,

so I made sure to peak outside during lunch hour to catch the girls.

They would be eating outside in the grass courtyard and

even got to pet a horse on their way to recess!

Lindi with her friend group.

Della got to go to the Natural History museum,
aka the dinosaur museum for her field trip.

And the district must be trippin' only allowing
1 parent volunteer to attend!

How on earth are 2 adults capable of reining in 25 first graders on a field trip?

Mrs. Abbot was borderline pleading for parents to come for extra  reinforcement.

I don't blame her!

Usually Della is texting Casey all during Sacrament meeting.

This week she decided to write a note instead. 

Rusty's team made it to the Championship!!

A first ever for his school in flag football!

They played at Mountain View, against Stapley (ewwww, Stapley).

Why do I say that in my head like on Fuller House.

Ewww Fernando. We don't like him.

I'm just kidding.

It does seem like when we are in any sort of championship, it is against Stapley.

And they always win.

Unfortunately, this night was no different.
Wahhhh.

It was a good fight.

 

The weather was impeccable.
Not hot, or cold.

All you needed was a light jacket:)

And the sky was dreamy.

 

We have reached a whole new level of no privacy.

She crammed the keyboard under the bathroom door so I could 

unlock the computer.

Back at the school Lindi qualified to be in the relay race!

Casey took off to Wyoming for a guys snowmobiling trip!

Night hike for Rusty with his teachers quorum. 

After a temple session, Casey and I went to go see the Evan's practicing for the 
Easter pageant. 

It's hard to see, but Jesus is on the cross.

It was a freakishly cold and drizzly night.

I text her that picture and asked if they needed some hot chocolate delivered!

The kids instantly yelled yes, so off to QT to make sure they 

didn't freeze to death in their jandals (Jesus sandals). 

♪ Is it your birthday, boy? Cause you lookin like a present ♪

Casey turned 41!!

In true Casey fashion, he did NOT want any fuss or attention.

We grabbed lunch at Steve's Krazy Subs, one of his favorites. 

David and Noel also share March bdays, so we went out to celebrate 

with fancy shakes!

Rusty and his friends.

Trey's brother was opening his mission call.

We loved our experience with AAA so much, that we wanted to 

see them again!

How on earth did we need them twice in 2 weeks, when

we have never needed them once in 20 years??

This time was because BOTH of my key fobs got locked into my car.

I tried on star, but the reception was not working because it was

in the garage. 

This was fun!

Bethany and I tried out a new trendy thing.

Its a rolling fascia massage studio.

I was skeptical, but man was it amazing!!

If it weren't so far away I would be going on the regular. 

Lindi and Penelope are into baking when they are together.

This time they created a restaurant where you picked the shape,

flavor and toppings of your cookie.

Lane still at it with baseball.

Our dream date nights are dinner then Dateline in bed.
Getting old has it perks, ha!

One of us only lasts 10 minutes:)

Lindi's birthday was coming up, so she had a shopping and lunch date

with Olive!

 

Sporty February and Belated Christmas Parties

Winter sports always hits hard in our family!

3 out of the 4 kids were on a sports team.
 Which led to lots of dividing and conquering.

Even when you don't know how you are going to

physically make every ones schedules work, it magically falls into place.

Then you sit back and feel the deepest gratitude for children who 

love to be active and succeed in trying new things.

That was Lindi this round.

She gave basketball a first shot!

Was she a natural?

Not necessarily.

We were all a little nervous for her first game (herself included).

But she came out with smiles and a little more confidence!

She went from running the opposite direction when the ball

was being passed to her, to making baskets and helping with the score! 

It also helped that her coach was the nicest man on planet earth!
Oh, his patients with the whole team was bar none.
When  kids left the gym with tears in their eyes from another loss, 
he encouraged them to keep trying and together they will get better!

Her practices worked out perfectly as they were at Rusty's school at the same time

he had his flag football games!

See, it magically always worked out. 

Lindi was pretty timid at first, but Penelope helped get her aggressiveness
going. That girl is not afraid to fight for the ball!

I love how friendships help balance things out and teach you different things.  

Rusty was a lineman for his team.
Not his first choice, but once again so proud of him for having a good attitude and

being grateful to be on the team and contributing to his best ability.

Down at the high school Lane was living his best life at short stop!

We somehow made the playoffs and the purple panthers were pumped!

It was a good first experience, and I think she has an itch for more!

Keeping it real, I came home exhausted from one of Lanes games.
Casey was out of town, and I had barely managed to get dinner on the table.

I got a phone call from Lane that he locked his keys in his truck.
We only have one key.

After 20 years of never using AAA, it finally paid off to have it!
Just a few weeks prior I told Casey to get rid of it because
my car has it's own roadside service through Cadillac.

Now to add Lanes name to the account so I don't have to be there in person
when they come to the rescue! 

 

Physical therapy in the living room. 

Amongst the non stop daily life, we got together with both my extended 

families since we never got together during the holidays.

Which I actually love.
It's too crazy during December and more people can come in February. 

And I feel at home at Aunt Marcia and Uncle Dea's home.
I love it there so much. 

It's nostalgia to the max.
I spent many Summers here with cousins.

The planned 1 night sleep overs always morphed into almost a whole week.

I am the oldest in my family, and lets just say I lived in a very sheltered bubble.

So being over there with 9 children in their family, half of them

being teenagers or young adults was always exhilarating for me!  

They had a backyard door that was never locked, and nobody knocked.

It was constantly opening with friends pouring in all hours of the day.

I  swore I would have a house like that someday.

Anyone and everyone welcome. 

Lets just say my aunt is a SAINT!!

Not much has changed, either.

The love in this room was tangible.

Almost like a distant heaven with family members
who I adore and love being around!

My dad is the baby in his family.

This is his only brother, Jim.

He has a brother who died at birth, David.

And my sweet aunt Marcia!

She is the oldest in the family.
My dad has 2 other sisters who weren't there.

Aunt Karen lives in Washington.

I love her dearly, too.

And aunt Judy.

They sat in this corner chatting away basically the whole time.
They don't get to see each other very much.

Stephanie hosted the Udall party!
My grandma is too old and feeble to do much these days, which is sad she wasn't
able to make it.

Grateful for those cousins who put forth the effort for gatherings so we
can stay connecting other than social media!

Hey, hey!
Los Betos for the win, again!

We are becoming good friends:)

Trellany put together a fun trivia game that included 
facts about family members.

Amber had her mission homecoming at church!

I didn't take this picture, but I'm glad Marnie did!
It's always fun to see Casey in action at the pulpit. 

Still loving on Amber every second she can get!